Hot Guy/Cold Drink: Cocktails and Cross-Dressing With Michael Pitt

Michael Pitt is funny. Well, he happens to think so, anyway. After being told that we'll be chatting about his provocative new sci-fi drama, I Origins, over a round of absinthes on the rocks, I'm surprised to find the actor—standing in a small pocket of shade on the rooftop bar of New York's Conrad hotel—sipping on a large, brown, mystery cocktail. "I thought we were drinking absinthe!" I protest, pretty disappointed that I'm not going to imbibe ice-cold liquid fire with Jimmy Darmody himself. But Pitt doesn't budge. "You'll be having an Old Fashioned," he says, gesturing to an amber-hued cocktail. Very well then.

But when pressed to reveal what he's drinking—a beverage I will refer to as Pitt Punch from here on out—the actor, who has yet to remove his sunglasses and reveal what I assure you are the bluest eyes in the entire world—gives me a wry smile. "You really want to know?" he asks. "I really do." He leans in closely. "It's a potent mix, you see, of tequila, vodka, rum…" I'm listening. "…a splash of Campari and a little Jägermeister…" Wait, what? "No way! Let me taste it," I insist. "Are you sure?" he asks. "Oh, I'm sure," I say. "I used to do beer funnels in college." [Awkward silence.] He removes the shades. "It's Coca-Cola." And so goes a Pitt punchline.

Despite his 15 episodes as a high school football player on Dawson's Creek, I expected the 33-year-old star—whose body of work includes Martin Scorsese's HBO series, Boardwalk Empire, Bernardo Bertolucci's The Dreamers, Larry Clark's Bully, and Gus Van Sant's Last Days—to be standoffish. But in person, he's warm, curious, and just a touch sarcastic (like, say, Kevin McAllister all grown up). For example, when asked to describe his perfect day, Pitt tells me he'd like to go swimming in the ocean. With me. And then just stares at me with those unblinking, ice-blue globes waiting for me to flinch. And I do. Of course I do.

Katie Friedman

So Michael, something that struck me about 'I Origins' is the idea that there are two types of women in life: the free-spirited Sofis [Astrid Bergès-Frisbey] and the responsible-slash-boring Karens [Brit Marling]…

That's one way of really labeling two types of different women!

You don't think your character settled for Karen?

Absolutely not. That is not how I was playing it. One was a very passionate, but probably a very unchangeable, child-like love. And one was a more mature love. And in my experience, personally, a mature love is not a bad thing at all. There's something very, very powerful about having a life mate that you are attracted to, but then can also have a beer with. Now drink!

Okay, okay. But do women like Sofi really exist in real life?

Absolutely. Have I known any Sofis in my life? Yes.

A lot of critics mention your good looks. A Pitchfork review of an album you put out with your band Pagoda actually calls you a "pretty boy." Do you try to pick material that doesn't hinge on your bone structure?

To be honest, I make very controversial films. The films that I've made have been very, very bold choices. As the years go by, I think my work is going to come more and more in context. The truth is that you can't take what people say too seriously. If I cared what people think about my career, I would have not done—just look at my work. Don't look at me, look at what I've done. Every movie that I've picked, from my first film on, has been considered by everyone to be "career suicide." And I have an amazing life. I have an amazing career. I work with artists. But I'm not making Spider-Man. I mean, you're definitely paying for these drinks.

Katie Friedman

Happy to. Let's play rapid fire: How would you describe your style?

I wouldn't describe my style.

What keeps you motivated?

I love what I do.

But have you ever done something and thought, 'I don't like the way that turned out'?

Yes. Life throws you some curve balls, but you gotta keep getting up. Or you know, end it. But I'm not gonna end it. The biggest rebellion I have is to succeed or stay alive. And I'm very rebellious.

Who's your favorite drinking buddy?

What kind of drunk are you?

I'm a mess. I'm a mess in a dress when I get drunk. I usually end up being a mess. I usually end up in a dress. We need to get you a refill and then we can talk about it.

Katie Friedman

I've noticed that you're not on Twitter. I didn't expect you to be, of course. But do you think there's any merit in our overshare culture?

I think it's good to have a good sense of humor about this stuff, but I also think a little seriousness on the Internet could be in order. There's a disconnect with people—they end up saying horrible things they would never say. Most of the people that I know who do that are like, 'I'm just fucking joking. It's amusing and silly and stupid.' So you're spending hours of your time doing something you find ironic? I, personally, don't have time to do that. But there's also a lot of amazing things with social media. It's changing everything. It's changing your job and my job.

So you think you'll have to get on Twitter?

You know, as an actor—there's a movie star and then there's an actor, right? I consider myself an actor not a movie star. It's not about me; it's more about the character.

You think actors dilute their saleability when we know too much?

I think it can hurt them. In I Origins I play a molecular biologist. And people were very surprised by that. I think they're surprised by that not solely based on my work: If you look at my work there are elements in films like The Dreamers where I play a very straight-laced character—but because when you look at my interviews, people love to portray me as sort of a wild child or some shit.

Katie Friedman

Wild child! This guy? You were on 'Dawson's Creek'! What was that like, anyway?

My mother once told me something, as mother's do. It went: 'If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all.' That said, what do you want to ask me about Dawson's Creek?

I want to know about Michelle Williams...

Okay, great. I've got something nice to say. When I met Michelle Williams, I flew down there and she took me under her wing. I was, like, living a double life. I was living in the projects in Fort Greene on my own since I was 15. I lived in this place that was kind of Murder Avenue. You were happy when people got shot because it meant that the cops came around. So I was going from this world where I didn't even have a TV and had to tell [the network] not to send a limo because one limo driver got fucked up in front of my house. I'm going back and forth between these two worlds. I didn't want them to know—I felt like, 'Oh my God, if these people know something like that, they'll fire me.' I was too young to realize that I'm actually talented and that's why I got the job. So it was a very uncomfortable situation. But Michelle Williams, when I got down there, did something that was really amazing: She drove me to the bookstore and she just went through the bookstore and said, 'You gotta read this, this, and this.'

What are Michelle Williams' favorite books?

One was, um, Hermann Hesse. I forget which book. You're talking now…man. That was a long time ago.

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